Residents complaining about snow removal, but manager urges calm

Complaints are piling up at the city's municipal works office almost as much as the snowbanks in Cornwall.

Bill de Wit, the city's manager of municipal works - which includes snow plowing and removal - said his office has heard loud and clear from residents in Cornwall who are sick and tired of getting stuck at the end of their driveway, or unable to see around the corner.

And he feels for them.

"It's really an unforunate situation," said de Wit in an interview.

Eleven days ago the city was buried in nearly 40 cm of snow, and crews are now hurriedly trying to remove massive snowbanks from Cornwall streets.

Municipal works has concentrated most of its focus on the old city square mile, which includes everything within the Water, Cumberland, Ninth Street and McConnell Avenue area.

The reason is this part of the city is congested enough on a good day, let alone when it's buried under snow.

But crews are now beginning to branch out into other regions too.

"We are on the fringes now," said de Wit. "We've got to prioritize.

"(But) in some cases people have as much snow in their driveways as they do in the snowbank."

There's little snow forecast in Cornwall for the balance of this week, which means crews should be able to make some steady progress.

So far, said de Wit, the city has spent about $150,000 to remove snowbanks since the storm, and he added in a 24-period the removal costs can increase by as much as $48,000.